There are various types of vacuum cleaners available on the market, and these can be categorized generally into ‘cylinder’ vacuum cleaners, ‘upright’ vacuum cleaners, ‘handheld’ vacuum cleaners and ‘stick’ vacuum cleaners (also known as ‘stick-vacs’).
Cylinder and upright vacuum cleaners are generally used as a household's primary vacuum cleaner, for heavy-duty cleaning tasks around the home. Handheld and stick vacuum cleaners, unlike most cylinder and upright vacuum cleaners, are portable in the sense that they are light enough to be carried in the hand rather than being supported on the floor by a rolling assembly. Handheld and stick vacuum cleaners are typically powered by batteries, and are often used for low-duty cleaning jobs such as spot-cleaning of floors, upholstery and vehicle interiors.
Common with all types of vacuum cleaners (and indeed many other types of domestic appliance) is the requirement for a user to be able to turn them on and off. Since cylinder and upright vacuum cleaners are generally used for relatively long periods of time, they are usually provided with a simple on/off button that can be pressed to turn the machine on and then pressed again to turn the machine off. Since handheld and stick vacuums are often used in short bursts on an ad-hoc basis, they are commonly fitted with a trigger which can be depressed by a user to turn the machine on, and released to turn it off.
The invention relates to improvements in the means for activating and deactivating household appliances such as vacuum cleaners, and is particularly suited to handheld appliances such as stick-vacs and handheld vacuum cleaners.